There were others in the world who, like us, were seen as worthless, not expected to aspire or excel, for whom mediocrity was predestined, and who should expect to be told where to go, what to do, whom to marry, and where to live. Mr. Baldwin tells Big James: “Here you were: to be loved. To be loved, baby, hard, at once, and forever, to strengthen you against the loveless world.”
